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Bentley in the 21st Century is a very different animal from the creaking, Rolls-Royce-derived land yachts of yore. (For that matter, Rolls-Royces of today are very different from the land yachts of yore, too.) While still retaining – and constantly refining – their traditional range of incredibly powerful, aristocratic Arnage saloons, Bentley have advanced in a big way technologically, as well as image-wise, to reach an unprecedented, younger audience.
The new Continental range of Bentleys, designed from the ground up under the parentage of the vast Volkswagen Group, build on the technological strengths afforded to the brand by the monster German company- whilst retaining the traditional essence of what it means to drive a Bentley. This means every single car bearing the famed winged-B logo is more than adequately powerful. And heavy. Nearly every Bentley sold from 2007 will have in excess of 500 horsepower, and weigh close to 2.5 tons. Not a marque for the environmentalists, then.
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No matter, for the Bentley driving experience is as a consequence, utterly unique. I mean, there are very few cars out there which can match the unmistakable feeling of thundering along at ludicrous speeds in something as big as, well, a Bentley. It is this feeling of effortless power that defines the Bentley experience. Previously, in the pre-VW range, this would have been a slightly hairy experience, the monstrous torque of the venerated old turbo V8s being enough to overwhelm an ancient, flexing chassis. I remember road tests of the turbo-V8 Sedanca Coupé of the late 1990s leaving me in awe at the prospect of driving something so big and yet, so capable of warping the tarmac under its wheels.
What does it take to own a 21st Century Bentley then? If you are the type not to associate yourselves with the staid, mothballed confines of tradition and would rather the sophistication – and reliability – of a modern, sophisticated multi-valve W12 engine and all-wheel-drive, then the Continental range is for you. Eschewing the fustiness and excess of the more traditional Arnage range, you have no other choice but to choose (oh what a hard life you have!) between the vast Flying Spur sedan, the soon-to-be de rigeur convertible GTC, or the one that resuscitated Bentley, the Continental GT coupe.
All share the same engine, paddle-operated 6-speed automatic gearbox, drum-tight build quality, and basic architecture underneath. All are, despite being so heavy, properly, headache-inducingly fast with their 552 horsepower, 479 lb-ft twin-turbo engines – as if having 12 cylinders and 6 liters wasn't enough. All are distinct enough to have different characters to suit subtly different clientèle. Which one is right for you?
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Next page: The Continental Flying Spur |
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